5 Reasons to buy a Predator Generator from Harbor Freight

Killer Performance : These Harbor Freight Generators are aptly named "Predator "as they are devouring the competition. These generators are built to over perform and priced to undercut the competition..

Harbor Freight's entire range of Generators performs consistently in Consumer Reports reviews.  In Review after review they rate the Harbor Freight Generators as the best value for money. 

History of Reliability : Built on a design platform that has proved rugged and reliable these Harbor Freight Generators have been delivering value for the last 40 years. That gives them a huge competitive advantage.  On to the Pros & Cons :

5 Reasons to buy a Predator Generator

Reason 1 : Price

Lowest Cost : One of the main reasons for the great success of the Predator Range is their extremely competitive pricing.  

All the Predator Generators are price leaders with either the lowest or close to the lowest price in their category making them enormously attractive for buyers.

Reason 2 :  Reliable

Mr Reliable : Do you know that the Rockets we use today including the Saturn Rockets used by Spacex were manufactured 50 years back.  That's because they are so well made that they're still the real deal. These generators takes a page from Spacex.

Long Lasting : The Harbor Freight Generator was engineered with reliability as the front and center goal.

A rugged steel frame is the hallmark of all Predator Generators an a central structural center piece of the design.  

The steel frame prevent Generator shake and increases the longevity of the generator. Its very common to see Predator Generators lasting well beyond the lives of many of their pricier competitors.

Reason 3 :  Easy Repair and Convenient Design

Easy Maintenance and Repair : These Generators are usually the darling of your neighborhood Electrician  because all the spare parts and the design are generic and applicable to many other common tools.  

You will have the lowest maintenance bills with a Harbor Freight Generator. Most automotive, power tool and shop equipment technicians prefer these generators because of their robust design.

Multiple Outlets : Most Predator Generators boast of five or more 120 volt, 20 amp outlets.  Each of these can power your construction tools or your hair dryers, refrigerators, TVs, radios and coffee makers.

Furthermore, the larger Predator generators have a  30A twist-4prong 120V / 240V outlet that you can use for heavy tools and your AC.  

Safety is paramount, every Harbor Freight Generator has breaker reset buttons along with a ground knob to connect to your household electrical panel ground.

Reason 4 :  Motor

Work Horse Motor : The Motor that powers these Generators is very similar to the motor that powers your Lawn Mower and your Go Kart. 

Thats an enormous advantage as it is well understood and extremely rugged. It needs more care in terms of oil changes and clean air filters.

That is a small price to pay for such a hard working reliable work horse.

Reason 5 : Gravity Tank & Carburetor

Gravity Fed Fuel Tank : They have a fuel tank up top that is easy to fill and more importantly allows fuel to flow down naturally assisted by gravity.

Less chance of chokes and blockages and you eliminate the fuel pump and thus another potential part that could break down.

The Predator Generator carburetor is over sized when compared to other similar generators.  The larger air fuel mixture leads to an easy start : Predator Generators tends to always start on the first pull, unlike others which may take some time to warm up.

The Con's of buying a Harbor Freight Generator

1.  Lack Portability : They are larger than their more expensive competitors and not easy to move around.  
2. Noisy :  An old reliable design, but definitely noisy. Unless you go for the Inverter based Predator Generators which are super quiet.
3. Warranty :  The Warranty terms are a little on the lighter side, reflective of their steep discounted prices. However, it is offset by their serviceability ( any local shop can work on them)  and great design which requires little or no maintenance.

Things to Consider before Buying a Harbor Freight Generator

Before you decide on a model to buy, you need to make sure it'll fit your needs.  You should evaluate if you can afford the sticker price of the generator. Next make sure you are ok with the running costs, and finally ask yourself if it can provide enough power for your family.

So, ask yourself these questions before you choose a model to buy.

What's your Budget?

The Generator will cost you  $600 or more, perhaps even a couple of thousand bucks. Yup, generators are a complex assembly of mechanical and electrical parts and are expensive. ​

The good news is that you are paying significantly less compared to other higher priced brands like Honda.  And, all that will pale in insignificance when you are and the family are safe and snug during the next big storm or outage.

Type

The Predator range of Generators are all  portable to varying degrees.   Wheels and handles make them fairly easy to move around.

The higher power generators are heavier and more bulky, but they can still be moved around by a single person. 

The higher power output generators as well as the generators which are quieter tend to be more expensive.  

So its a choice, you want to  power more devices and appliances with a noisy but cheaper Predator Generator, or you if you like your sleep and choose the quieter more expensive Predator Inverter Generator.  

Power

Once you have a good idea about the type of of generator and the budget you are ready to outlay, you will have to get a good estimate of your energy needs.

Consumer Reports has a great  article to help your compute the energy needs of your family per day?  Then you have to make an estimate of how much backup power you need for your family.

Depending on the distance from the nearest fuel or propane outlet,  any special medical equipment that needs power or if you are far from a city center and could be out for days of power : you estimate how much power you need. 

Do you need enough for a night, one day or for a few days ?  And you go from there.  

Final Decision

Once you have a good idea of your requirement, you will arrive at the correct size  ; perhaps a choice of two possible models.

And there you have it. Let get down to the brass tacks now and see the various options available in the market.

Sam from New England is very happy with the Predator 4000 : I run this during our long winters and the generator is its not too noisy at 72 dB.  I have sensitive electronics and I did take the trouble to purchase a separate power stabilizer. All the power outlets have resettable fuses : thats good safety.

In the last 3 years I have one leakage from a bad gasket, but it was an easy fix as these generators use such common parts. I got it on Amazon for $25 bucks. The generator is heavy, so get a set of wheels. This is a 5 star for my needs : good value and its been running along well for over 3 years now.

Predator  8750 Customer Review I :   I am a long time Predator owner and I have a 4000 watt unit for the last 3 years.

I recently purchased the 8750 to run my Millermatic Welder and a couple of Jackhammers. The 8750 was able to easily handily the load of the Welder and the Jackhammers. Super Pleased.

Predator  4000 Customer Review :  I have a story  : I run a machine shop and we use the large 30 inch Shop Fans to cool us in the Texas heat. 

This generator ran continuously everyday for 10 hours in a dirty assembly area for 3 months. Always started on the first pull and it ran on till it ran out of gas. Just flawless and very impressive. 

Thereafter, my generator sat unused and unserviced for 2 years till Harvey hit us. I tentatively took out the Generator which hadn't had an oil change or a fuel tank drained out.

I drained the fuel tank, cleaned the carburetor and added fuel and it started again on the very first pull. Unbelievable. This time I ran it continuously for 9 days.

I ran two refrigerators (one 19 cf and the other 24 cf), a freezer (14 cf) and a window AC unit (12,000 btu) running all of the time with some lights and the TV occasionally. 

I took some precautions and balanced the load between the outlets and used 12ga extension cords on all appliances to avoid overloading the generator and burning out its fuse.  This Generator is simply the best and is highly highly recommended.

Generator Care

The  gas-powered Predator Generators will run smoother and longer if you use a  fuel stabilizer.  When you leave your Generator with Fuel in its tank there is a danger of gum, varnish, rust and corrorsion occuring.

Adding a Fuel Stabilizer will prevent the occurrence of these problems and also increase the life of the generator.

Carburetor Care -If you are an infrequent user of the Portable Generator you must drain the carburetor.  A dirty carburetor can cause a lot of problems starting and running the generator smoothly.

Ventilation and Carbon Monoxide mitigation : The Predator Generators exhaust contains the deadly carbon monoxide gas. This poisonous gas is odorless and you cannot see or smell it.

Never run your Predator generator indoors or even in semi enclosed areas like a garage. Always run the unit outdoors and far from Vents, Windows or even doors and crawl spaces.  And be sure to install Carbon Monoxide alarms inside your home. 

Precautions while using a Predator Gasoline Generator :  Gasoline is highly flammable and explosive. You should be very careful not to overfill the fuel tank.  Leave some air in the fuel tank to allow the gasoline to expand.

An over full gas tank sometimes can result in fuel overflowing onto the hot engine causing  a major fire or explosion.

Refueling your Generator :  Never ever add gasoline while your generator is operating or has been recently operated.  Make sure the Generator is completely cool to touch before adding fuel.

Storage :  Storing it in open space is the best. You would not want gasoline vapors to reach an open spark or a flame or even a pilot light.  And never smoke near the generator or any stored fuel.

Conclusion :  We wish the warranty support on Harbor Freight Generators was a little more robust like the support from the top line Honda Generators.  

However, given the huge price differential,  robust   design, easy maintenance and their ubiquitous availability; Harbor Freight Generators score every time as the best buy for your hard earned dollars.

I hope you enjoyed this article on the Predator Generators and  their customer reviews. Thank you for visiting MySolarHome.us

Predator Generator Bottom of Article